New threat of cryptocurrency regulations coming from Europe

A new meeting of EU member states representatives is set to address the issue of digital asset regulation…

The member states of the European Union are set to address the challenges of cryptocurrency, in a meeting that’s been added to the diary for next month.

Finance ministers from the 28 member states of the EU – and that includes the UK still, at least for another few months – are set to come together at a session that’s being convened on September 7th (the end of next week at the time of writing).

According to Bloomberg, the issue on the proverbial table will be the growing popularity of cryptocurrency, and whether that brings with it a need for tighter regulation. According to a draft note seen by the site, amongst the key issues causing the EU member states some concern is the potential for cryptocurrency to be used for nefarious purposes, specifically including tax evasion, the financing of terrorist activities, and money laundering.

Quite what approach the different member states will opt for remain to be seen. Already, differing countries on the continent take differing approaches. Malta, for instance, is keen to position itself as cryptocurrency-friendly. Poland, meanwhile, has proven itself quite the opposite, with earlier this year cryptocurrency exchange BitBay moving its base of business from the latter to the former.

The finance ministers will be meeting in Vienna to discuss the challenge of digital assets, and the transparency of them, when they get together next week. It’s not been confirmed that this is the start of more formal regulation of cryptocurrencies in Europe, but few would bet against it.